Media Contact
Felicia Overton, Director of Marketing & Community Relations
Office: 602-212-2237,
foverton@arizonabbb.org
The BBB alerts consumers nationwide to BlueHippo’s three-year track record of failing to deliver on promises
The BBB of Central/Northern Arizona is cautioning consumers across
Arizona regarding BlueHippo Funding, LLC (BlueHippo), a financial
services company offering computers, electronics and other merchandise
via a hybrid layaway and installment financing plan aimed at low income
consumers and those with poor credit ratings.
The BBB System has logged more than 1,400 complaints from all 50
states against BlueHippo in the past three years. Due to this pattern
of complaints and BlueHippo’s failure to correct the underlying causes
for the complaints, the company is rated ‘unsatisfactory’ by the BBB
System.
“More than 65 percent of the complaints against BlueHippo fall into
one of three categories; high pressure sales practices, non-delivery of
promised merchandise, and unwillingness to provide a refund or
exchange,” said BBB President/CEO Matthew Fehling. “Basically,
consumers tell us they are being sold on a product and payment plan,
aren’t getting what they’ve paid for in a timely manner, and have no
way to get their money back.”
BlueHippo – a Maryland-based company advertising nationally through
television, direct mail and the Internet – targets individuals or
families with fixed or low incomes, as well as people with little or no
credit. It has been reported that prime prospects appear to be
families, typically with about a $25,000 per year annual income.
Before any merchandise is shipped, BlueHippo requires customers to
establish a record of nine consistent payments – usually in the form of
an initial deposit followed by weekly payments – all of which are
debited directly from consumers’ checking accounts.
Along with what appear to be affordable financing offers for
well-known brand name computers and other electronic equipment,
BlueHippo also entices consumers with promises of free televisions,
printers, or other home computer and electronics merchandise. The
computers the company finances are generally low-end models, and many
consumers allege that due to BlueHippo’s financing payment schedule,
they generally pay up to four times more than the computer would
actually cost had they bought it in-store.
BlueHippo notes that consumers may cancel at any time within the
initial nine-week deposit payment period. However, company policy does
not allow for refunds, and instead gives customers “credit” to purchase
products available on the company’s Web site. As a result of this
policy, BBBs are now beginning to receive additional complaints from
consumers who never received the merchandise they bought with their
store credit.
Many complaints to BBBs allege problems in receiving promised
merchandise. As an example, a Maryland woman reported that she paid
the company $2,200 for what she claims was a $600 computer. Through
electronic debits from her checking account, she paid BlueHippo an
initial fee of $99 and then $41.98 per week to establish a credit
history. Ultimately, the computer was delivered, but four months late,
and only after she contacted the company numerous times. Now, six
months after making her final payment on the computer, she has yet to
receive the free 20” plasma television and printer promised by
BlueHippo..
“While BlueHippo has attempted to address complaints, and has
delivered some merchandise, overall the company does not meet BBB
standards for marketplace behavior and is not measuring up in terms of
trust with consumers,” said Fehling.
The BBB isn’t the only organization scrutinizing BlueHippo’s
business practices. A recent settlement reached between the Maryland
Attorney General’s office and BlueHippo requires the company to offer
restitution to Maryland consumers.
BlueHippo denied that it engaged in any unfair or deceptive trade
practices or otherwise violated the law, but did agree to settle and
has since discontinued selling to consumers in the state of Maryland.
Several other attorney general offices have now subpoenaed BBB
complaints, with lawsuits having been filed in a number of states. As
well, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) reports that it has
accumulated 8,000 pages of consumer complaints about BlueHippo.
For more information about BlueHippo, see its BBB Reliability Report at: http://www.baltimore.bbb.org/commonreport.html?bid=23014013. To file a complaint against BlueHippo, or to check out a BBB Reliability Report on another business, go to www.arizonabbb.org.